Lug Nut Specs

Design Types

• Vehicle manufacturers use three separate lug nut designs, which are conical, mag seat and ball seat. Your vehicle's specific design type is located in your owner's manual. Conical lug nuts can be recognized by their sharp angled ends, which are tapered into a straight-edged funnel shape. Mag seat lugs look like bolts and need separate washers in order for them to attach to the vehicle properly. The ball seat lug nuts look similar to the conical lug nuts but have rounded ends instead of the conical's sharp angle ends.

Torque Specs

• Torque specifications vary by the year, make and model of your vehicle and can be located in your owner's manual. Every lug should be tightened with a calibrated vehicle torque wrench because their torque settings can be adjusted to the proper settings, which ensure the right amount of load pressure is applied to the lug nuts. Make sure your lugs are always clean and dry before torquing them. Never apply lubricants to the threads of a lug, this can cause the lugs to seize or result in the wheel stems breaking off your vehicle's axle or damage the brake rotors.

Removal

• Lug nuts can be removed with a lug, impact or socket wrench, though these wrenches may not loosen the lug nuts if they're seized to the vehicles studs. In cases such as this it's recommended that you use a breaker bar to loosen the lugs and then finish removing them with an impact wrench. Some vehicles use a wheel lock to prevent tires or rims from being stolen. You'll be able to determine if your vehicle uses a wheel lock if one of the lug nut faces looks considerably different. The wheel lock should be located in the glove box or in the trunk of the vehicle next to the car's jack.